Dripping Springs City Council talks tree preservation

DRIPPING SPRINGS  — There could be more regulations for tree preservation in Dripping Springs after residents have expressed concerns that trees are being cleared away with nearly every development.

At its Tuesday, Dec. 5 meeting, the Dripping Springs City Council considered an ordinance that would repeal and replace Article 28.06 Landscaping and Tree Preservation in the city’s code of ordinances, including changing procedures, tree preservation requirements, landscaping alterations and adding a host of definitions for key terms and concepts.

The conversation surrounding tree preservation started a little over a year ago following community input and feedback, according to city attorney Laura Mueller in her presentation to the city council.

“Our Comprehensive Plan survey [showed] that people were really concerned about the trees and we’ve seen a lot of the subdivisions that have been approved cutting down a lot of trees,” she said. “We are now trying to remedy that and one of the things that city council asked us to do was to make sure that wasn’t available anymore, so that’s the main focus of this ordinance: the clear-cutting of development sites.”

Other issues that prompted the consideration of a revised ordinance include: community focus on the natural environment; low (perceived) value to keeping existing urban canopy by some applicants; low financial barrier to creating bare pad sites; a focus on paying rather than preservation; and water conservation.

There are two scopes of the ordinance: residential homeowner/small projects with four units or less and residential subdivisions/commercial projects.

For the residential homeowner and small projects section, it only applies to areas that are in the city limits. The following is defined in the ordinance under this specific section:

• An individual cannot cut down any healthy legacy hardwood tree or heritage tree without a waiver

• An individual cannot damage trees that are protected by the ordinance

• Oaks cannot be trimmed or cut between February and July without a waiver (exceptions for emergencies exist)

• Trimming or cutting of oaks requires wound dressing

• An individual cannot irrigate or water where there is excessive water flow or runoff on sidewalks, driveways, streets or ditches

The section for residential subdivisions (more than four units) and all commercial projects applies to the city limits and extraterritorial jurisdiction. The following is defined in the ordinance under this specific section:

• An individual cannot cut down or damage any healthy legacy hardwood tree or heritage tree without a waiver

• Street trees are required

• Paving over the Critical Root Zone is not permitted

• Landscape buffers are required

• Landscape Plan, Tree Survey and Irrigation Plans are required with proposed site plans and construction plans

• Oaks cannot be trimmed or cut between February and July without a waiver (exceptions for emergencies exist)

• Trimming or cutting of oaks requires wound dressing

• Interior Lot Landscaping: Limitation on amount of turf, incentives for drip irrigation (reuse discount), no St. Augustine Grass (native/drought-tolerant grasses are required)

Previously, individuals who were building larger subdivisions or commercial-type projects would be able to pay a flat rate per acre to clear cut the lots. Instead, with the proposed revised ordinance, 100% of all heritage and legacy hardwood trees would have to be preserved, unless they get a waiver, and 35% of all standard and legacy non-hardwood trees would have to be preserved as well. For commercial, industrial and multi-family subdivision developments, 100% of all heritage and legacy hardwood trees would have to be preserved, unless they get a waiver, and 40% of all standard and legacy non-hardwood trees would have to be preserved.

“This is kind of the biggest change,” Mueller said. “They just come to us if they need a waiver to remove these, including, for example, if there is no way around it as far as infrastructure like wastewater [or] water.”

In her presentation, Mueller explained that there is a water conservation component to the ordinance. This includes, but is not limited to, only allowing turf grass varieties that are drought-tolerant and better suited for Texas (like Zoysia, Bermuda, Buffalograss and Habiturf) and working with water providers on enforcing additional requirements.

“What we learned during this past summer was that a lot of the irrigation water that was being used is being done with spray irrigation, which causes a lot of loss of that water where it’s not irrigating the property,” she said. “We also learned that more than the majority of the water being used in the city of Dripping Springs from the water suppliers is for irrigation of grass and so, due to obviously water [being] a limited resource, we wanted to acknowledge that.”

Mueller said that there are some exceptions to tree preservation including the following: natural disasters; diseased or dead trees; distressed trees; trees causing physical damage to structures or infrastructure; trees interfering with traffic lanes and utility easements; and drainage facilities.

As it is currently drafted, the Individual Residential Lots and Small Project Landscaping and Tree Preservation and Commercial and Subdivision Landscaping and Tree Preservation regulations would go into effect 30 days from the date of publication. And sections 28.06.079 – .081 (Tree Preservation) and Division 5. Standards — Commercial and Subdivision Interior Lot Landscaping — would go into effect 90 days from the date of publication.

Deliberation by city council

Following the presentation, members of the dais expressed their own concerns.

Council member Geoffrey Tahuahua pointed out that the proposed revised ordinance cites the city of Austin’s Grow Green Guide in the definitions section. But he suggested using another source.

“We cite the city of Austin’s Grow Green Guide as part of a potential requirement. And I think I have said several times, but if not I will say it again, that anything that we pull from another city, I would strongly suggest that it not be from the city of Austin,” he said. “We are essentially appointing a city of Austin bureaucrat to be in charge of it [and] in this case, you are talking about the city of Austin chief of environmental officer.”

He added that “if it’s actually something good, I would much rather copy and paste and we have a Dripping Springs Grow Green one or I would generally accept something from the North [Central] Texas Council of Governments.”

Mayor Bill Foulds asked for more clarification on the water conservation component and working with local water providers.

“Sometimes, the Water Supply Corp. and other water providers like West Travis County PUA, they might have more strict requirements. We put in the ordinance that what we are doing, those are our requirements,” Mueller responded, “But if we are in a different stage of drought or someone else has a more strict requirement and you are a part of that, then you need to follow the stricter requirement.”

Because the tree preservation idea was prompted by community feedback, council member Sherrie Parks asked how this proposed revised ordinance, if approved, would affect residents.

“The way it’s currently drafted, any legacy hardwood tree, which is a 12-inch or bigger, or a heritage tree, which is 24 inches or bigger, cannot be cut down without a waiver,” Mueller said. “We have waiver forms already on our website and once this is approved, part of that 30-day buffer is for us to update that to be for the tree waivers as well. The only other big issue in the ordinance that is restrictive is not watering your lawn where the water is flowing into the street.”

Council member Wade King asked Mueller if it would be worth considering that any request to remove a healthy legacy or heritage tree would be required to come before the city council. And Mueller said that as of right now, the requests would be going to the Development Review Committee — made up of the building official, city administrator, city engineer and planning director. If the waiver is denied by that committee, that individual who requested it could make an appeal before the city council.

However, it is ultimately up to the city council to decide if it would want to see the requests.

There are various education opportunities set for the ordinance including Codes and Coffee with Building Department, planning department education for developers, having information on the city’s website and various meetings open to the public. But council member Parks asked how landscaping businesses/tree trimmers would be informed.

Mueller said that she will go through the Dripping Springs Chamber of Commerce to get a list of the landscaping businesses and she would also like to have at least one town hall meeting once the ordinance gets approved, where residents would be welcomed to attend as well.

“I’ve seen it happen before at my house,” Parks said. “[Landscaping businesses] are just not aware of what city ordinances say, so they go ahead with their business and then they go, ‘Oh, we were supposed to do that?’”

Understanding that the revised ordinance as it was presented is extensive, the city council unanimously decided to postpone the item until Jan. 16, 2024.

“Everyone has good points, they are great points. I feel like we do need to step back, look at it and address all of these questions. It is a lot,” council member Travis Crow said. “This was a lot of hard work and I think it’s a step in the right direction. We need to do something. We need to fine tune it to make it better.”

The full Dripping Springs City Council meeting held on Tuesday, Dec. 5 can be viewed at bit.ly/41cyjYT. To read the full agenda packet, visit www.drippingsprings-tx.municodemeetings.com.